Jessica Kerr

I am the editor of the UWA Law Review and the Law School's Research Integrity Advisor, and I teach in the Law and Society and Juris Doctor programmes. My research interests span judicial and sociolegal studies, public and constitutional law, particularly in comparative context. I am a NZ and US-trained barrister and solicitor, admitted in NZ and Western Australia, with professional experience in East Africa. My early career was in central government, with a focus on complex litigation, judiciaries, regulatory investigation and enforcement, legislative drafting, rule of law development, and access to justice. Prior to commencing my PhD at UWA in 2019, I was serving as a criminal magistrate in the Seychelles and coordinating the Seychelles Legal Information Institute. Public law, Dispute Resolution, Legal Reform, Judiciary, Constitutional Law

[2026] AI and Judicial Competence, Kerr, J., Apr 2026, The Cambridge Handbook of AI and Technologies in Courts. Zalnieriute, M. & Limante, A. (eds.). Cambridge University Press, p. 335-351 [2026] Dame Sian Elias and "small c" constitutional heroism, Kerr, J. & Perham, E., 16 Apr 2026, Elgar Companion to Female Chief Justices in Comparative Perspective. Delaney, E. & Dixon, R. (eds.). Edward Elgar Publishing [2026] Earning Trust in Judges: From Independence to Competence in Aotearoa New Zealand, Kerr, J., 2026, (In preparation) Hart Publishing. (Hart Series on Judging and the Courts) [2026] Judicial Independence Across the Tasman, Kerr, J., 2026, (Accepted/In press) Judicial Independence in Australia: Looking Back, Looking Forward. Ananian-Welsh, R., Crowe, J. & Kerr, J. (eds.). The Federat